Marathon Oil (NYSE:MRO) Coverage Initiated at StockNews.com

StockNews.com started coverage on shares of Marathon Oil (NYSE:MRO) in a report issued on Wednesday morning. The brokerage issued a buy rating on the oil and gas producer’s stock.

Several other research analysts have also recently issued reports on MRO. Scotiabank cut their target price on shares of Marathon Oil from $29.00 to $27.61 and set a sector perform rating on the stock in a report on Monday, August 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated a neutral rating and issued a $33.00 price target on shares of Marathon Oil in a report on Wednesday, July 17th. Piper Sandler lifted their price target on shares of Marathon Oil from $34.00 to $37.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a report on Thursday, August 15th. Capital One Financial cut shares of Marathon Oil from a strong-buy rating to a hold rating in a report on Wednesday, June 5th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reiterated an equal weight rating and issued a $29.00 price target (down previously from $38.00) on shares of Marathon Oil in a report on Friday, May 31st. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $32.03.

Marathon Oil Trading Down 1.3 %

MRO stock opened at $26.72 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $15.07 billion, a PE ratio of 11.04 and a beta of 2.16. Marathon Oil has a one year low of $21.81 and a one year high of $30.06. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $27.99 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $27.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41, a quick ratio of 0.52 and a current ratio of 0.57.

Marathon Oil (NYSE:MRO) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, August 7th. The oil and gas producer reported $0.63 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.69 by ($0.06). Marathon Oil had a return on equity of 13.81% and a net margin of 22.12%. The firm had revenue of $1.71 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.69 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.48 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts predict that Marathon Oil will post 2.76 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Marathon Oil Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 10th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, August 21st will be given a $0.11 dividend. This represents a $0.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.65%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, August 21st. Marathon Oil’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 18.18%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Marathon Oil

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Park Avenue Securities LLC raised its position in Marathon Oil by 4.8% in the 1st quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 9,062 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $257,000 after buying an additional 415 shares during the last quarter. Wahed Invest LLC raised its position in Marathon Oil by 4.2% in the 4th quarter. Wahed Invest LLC now owns 10,317 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $249,000 after buying an additional 419 shares during the last quarter. Gradient Investments LLC raised its position in Marathon Oil by 1.9% in the 2nd quarter. Gradient Investments LLC now owns 22,829 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $655,000 after buying an additional 428 shares during the last quarter. Trueblood Wealth Management LLC raised its position in Marathon Oil by 4.8% in the 1st quarter. Trueblood Wealth Management LLC now owns 9,559 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $271,000 after buying an additional 439 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Argent Capital Management LLC raised its position in Marathon Oil by 0.5% in the 1st quarter. Argent Capital Management LLC now owns 87,563 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $2,482,000 after buying an additional 441 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 77.24% of the company’s stock.

Marathon Oil Company Profile

Marathon Oil Corporation, an independent exploration and production company, engages in exploration, production, and marketing of crude oil and condensate, natural gas liquids, and natural gas in the United States and internationally. The company also produces and markets products manufactured from natural gas, such as liquefied natural gas and methanol.